A consideration of the views expressed by the numerous intellectuals who contributed to four prominent Arabic-language cultural journals of the late 1930s—the monthlies al-Hilal and al-Majalla ...
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A consideration of the views expressed by the numerous intellectuals who contributed to four prominent Arabic-language cultural journals of the late 1930s—the monthlies al-Hilal and al-Majalla al-Jadida, the weeklies al-Risala and al-Thaqafa—offer the fullest understanding of the positions taken by Egypt's intellectual elite regarding the confrontation between liberal and authoritarian principles of political organization. This chapter considers both the more reflective analyses found in these journals of intellectual opinion and their commentaries on the world crisis as it unfolded over the later 1930s. It addresses how Egyptian intellectuals viewed the historical origins and the domestic characteristics of Italian Fascism and German Nazism, specifically their interpretations of the philosophical as well as the conjunctural roots of contemporary fascism, their evaluation of the merits and flaws found in democratic versus totalitarian forms of government, and their conclusions regarding the intellectual falsity and moral evil of Nazi racism.Less

Egyptian Intellectuals and Fascism, I : Fascism at Home: Denouncing Totalitarianism and Racism

Published in print: 2009-10-21

A consideration of the views expressed by the numerous intellectuals who contributed to four prominent Arabic-language cultural journals of the late 1930s—the monthlies al-Hilal and al-Majalla al-Jadida, the weeklies al-Risala and al-Thaqafa—offer the fullest understanding of the positions taken by Egypt's intellectual elite regarding the confrontation between liberal and authoritarian principles of political organization. This chapter considers both the more reflective analyses found in these journals of intellectual opinion and their commentaries on the world crisis as it unfolded over the later 1930s. It addresses how Egyptian intellectuals viewed the historical origins and the domestic characteristics of Italian Fascism and German Nazism, specifically their interpretations of the philosophical as well as the conjunctural roots of contemporary fascism, their evaluation of the merits and flaws found in democratic versus totalitarian forms of government, and their conclusions regarding the intellectual falsity and moral evil of Nazi racism.